A savoury pancake recipe that is both gluten-free and suitable for diabetics!

Don’t let your diabetes, or gluten-free diet, stop you joining in the fun this pancake day: try this Socca gluten free pancake recipe, taken from Mediterranean Cooking for Diabetics by the original Poldark, Robin Ellis. Made with chickpea flour, this delicious street food is still sold in parts of southern France and can be the base of any number of delicious toppings, from tomato slices to bacon bits.

Farinata or Socca (Pancake)

serves 4
175g/6oz chickpea (garbanzo bean) flour
400ml/14 fl oz sparkling water
65ml/2.5 fl oz olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tbsp rosemary leaves
olive oil

1. Gently shake the flour through a sieve into a mixing bowl. Add the water and whisk it in until smooth.
2.  Add the olive oil and whisk it in. Add pinches of salt and pepper and the rosemary. You will have roughly half a litre (20 fl oz) of batter. Leave to stand for 20–30 minutes.
3. When you are ready to make the pancake, heat a swirl of olive oil in a 25cm/10in frying pan. When hot, put a tablespoonful of the stirred mixture in the pan and turn the heat down a little. Cook for a few seconds until you can ease the pancake loose with a spatula or fish slice. Now you have to turn it over! Be bold! Practice makes perfect and anyway, the first attempt, if not completely successful, will be edible. Cook the pancake for another few seconds and remove from the pan. Both sides should be a golden brown. Add a few twists of the pepper mill to each side.
4.  For a larger pancake, carefully pour a second tablespoon of batter on top of the first.

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